Trusted Mentor

Trusted Mentor

By David Wexler

Associate Editor

Ron Spector took developing office buildings literally.

The late commercial real estate professional was behind six office buildings in downtown Sarasota, including the red-brick Wachovia Plaza at 1800 2nd St., which was met with criticism and controversy when it was constructed 20 years ago.

But Spector didn't just put up money and plans for his buildings and move on to other projects. He would physically help build the structure, down to pouring concrete or plastering drywall. And when tenants moved in, Spector kept at it, helping to build businesses by mentoring those just starting out.

"He was like a dad and big brother to a lot of fledgling businesses," says Kathy Layton, a longtime tenant of Spector's at the Wachovia Plaza. "After my first big deal that I ever made, I came back to the office, knocked on Ron's door and flopped the check on his desk and showed it to him. He looked at it, smiled, handed it back and said, "Good job, now go make more.' That meant the world to me."

Spector died Dec. 18, 2003, of leukemia. He was 62. At a Nov. 10 dinner, the Argus Foundation plans to honor Spector post-humously with a lifetime achievement award for his contributions to greater Sarasota. The Argus Foundation is a group of business leaders in the greater Sarasota area.

In addition to his building accomplishments, Spector is known for his efforts in making sure Sarasota County administrators stayed in a downtown building. He also served in leadership roles in several civic groups, including the Argus Foundation, the Association of Downtown Property Owners, the Tiger Bay Club and the Chamber of Commerce. He served as advisory board chairman of the First Florida Bank of Sarasota and ran a committee focused on consolidation of the Sarasota city and county fire departments.

Spector was born in Highland Park, Mich., and graduated from Michigan State University and Detroit College of Law in 1967. He spent the next year as an assistant prosecutor in Detroit during the days of the city-wide riots. He never lost a jury trial.

In 1968, he drove to Venice in his Volkswagen Bug. He bought a piece of beachfront property. Broke and without any experience and guidance, he developed his first project: Gulf 'n Bay Condominiums. His wife Heather followed Spector to the area in 1969.

Spector went on to develop the Beach Way Condominium on Siesta Key and River Walk Mobile Home Village in North Port.

Hands-on

Spector's friends, family and colleagues described him as a shy, unassuming man who always wore a suit and tie. Attorney John Patterson, a friend of Spector, says Spector would've much rather visited a dentist than speak to the media or accept an award.

"He traveled under the radar," Patterson says, "but everybody knew who Ron was. You knew Ron not from his self-promotion, but what he accomplished and by his reputation."

Spector put on holiday parties every year for all his tenants at the atriums at Wachovia Plaza. Don Lawson, the architect of the Wachovia building and a friend of Spector's, said the developer was so shy that instead of mingling with partygoers, he would don a Santa Claus cap and serve drinks from behind the bar.

Spector was also known for his hands-on approach to his buildings. His wife, Heather, says he was most happy covered in drywall and sawdust. During the weekends, you could always find Spector in baggy khaki pants and ball cap pouring concrete, laying bricks, hanging doors or fixing a water fountain. He often times was confused for a maintenance or janitorial worker.

Lawson said you would always know when Spector was around when you'd see his old brown, beat-up El Camino.

"He had that car forever," says Lawson. "He'd have concrete blocks and cement in the back and it would be full of plans and hardware for the building."

Spector's tenants remembered him as someone who would do anything for his tenants. Spector liked to keep tabs on each tenant's business, offer advice to them and encourage them to succeed. As a result, his tenants were loyal to Spector and never wanted to leave.

And it wasn't just his own tenants that Spector wanted to keep from leaving. When the county administration threatened to move out of downtown to the Arthur Andersen building on Fruitville Road, Spector - who was nearly blind and suffering from the aftermath of a bone marrow transplant at the time - led the charge to keep the building downtown. Dressed up in a suit and tie, he helped convince commissioners why moving from downtown didn't make financial or economic sense; the commission ultimately voted to stay downtown.

The last of the six office buildings Spector worked on was the Wachovia Plaza. Some in the local community criticized Spector, even before construction of the 30,000-square-foot building was completed. Critics compared the structure, which was made of 1.1 million red bricks, to an old cigar factory out of Tampa.

The building consisted of two separate parts that share a core. Much of the criticism came after only one of the two wings was finished, says Lawson.

"Nobody really asked, 'Is this it?'" Lawson says. "Nobody really understood that it was only half of the building. There was a period of time when there were editorials in every Sunday newspaper blasting the building. Ron took it pretty hard. It hurt his feelings. But he never said anything and he didn't try to participate in the banter and never wrote a letter to the editor. He just kind of took it on the chin."

When the building was finished, the community embraced it and its unique design, Lawson says. Aside from consisting of two separate parts, the building included four- and five-story parking garages directly underneath the building. Each of the two wings contained a three-story atrium opened to the sky. The atriums have housed several social gatherings over the years, including weddings, holiday parties and charitable events.

"The uniqueness of having a three-story atrium, with all that light and the breeze from the openings, was something that had not ever been done around here," Lawson says. "I've seen them in other areas, but certainly not on a building of this scale and magnitude."

Ron Spector

Date of Birth: May 27, 1941

Died: Dec. 18, 2003

Family: Widow, Heather; three children: Hannah, George and Sam

Work: Spector was a real-estate developer, businessman and civic leader. He developed six office buildings in downtown Sarasota, two condominiums and a mobile home park.

What they say: "He passed on the legacy that power is not loud, that passion too can be quiet, and success can come out of tenacity and commitment." – Kathy Layton, former tenant in a Spector building.